Common sense tells us that smaller class size is good for students.
Large public schools are often partly judged by their average class size.
As a micro-school, LEADPrep has the benefit of small class sizes. But how is that really a benefit?
Project Based Learning
Small schools can specialize in hands-on and project-based learning that include community collaboration. Our students use the cities of Seattle and Kirkland as living classrooms. At a school with 600 students this type of immersion in real life as a classroom is simply not sustainable. But with small class size we are able to be innovative and explore more options for our students to create projects that have impact – both on the student and on the community as a whole. An example of this is the commercial videos students recently made for Kirkland businesses. The owner of the Lizzy Kate Tea House appreciated the school – local business collaboration and our students appreciated producing work that had a purpose and provided a service.
Relationships
Most people can’t manage more than about 150 friendships at a time. In a large school teachers and students both have great difficulty keeping tracking of individuals. In a micro-school teachers and students know each other well and teachers understand the learning style of each student. This means they can respond to students with tailored lessons designed to achieve personalized goals. Educators are able to respond nimbly to individual learner needs and be flexible with learning modalities.
Exploration and Research
Teachers have more flexibility in assigning work to students. Students are encouraged to follow a passion, a new interest, or to dig deeper – and then share what they learn with their fellow explorers. This creates a learning environment where there is less lecture and deeper learning through more discussion. Educators don’t do all the teaching; they manage the quality of learning across many channels and technologies.
Teachers as Guides
Educators at LEADPrep are able to avoid the “sage on the stage” mentality of large public schools and put themselves more in line with a “guide on the side” mentality. The daily schedule allows students to be guided to determine how they will spend their time within that structure – a critically important skill to master before they find themselves with no one telling them what to do everyday. Small class size allows the educators to loosen the reins on the students and aid them in learning to direct, pace, and control themselves and their use of time.
Learning project management, how to have real world relevance, to follow one’s passions, and to use teachers as a resource are a few of the many benefits of LEADPrep’s progressive small school model!
Support more learning options for our students! Attend LEADPrep’s Micro-School book launch on October 23! Register here!
